


Fight or Flight

by Repeatinglitanies



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Dark fic, Don’t copy to another site, F/M, Pseudo-Incest, Vanya doesn’t have powers in this universe, controlling Five, possessive Five
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-18
Updated: 2019-08-18
Packaged: 2020-09-06 20:42:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20297653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Repeatinglitanies/pseuds/Repeatinglitanies
Summary: Vanya had made a life for herself until Five found her





	Fight or Flight

**Author's Note:**

> Just FYI. I do not support Five's actions.
> 
> Additional note: I’m so sorry! It took several readers to point it out. I actually wasn’t clear but I had intended for the Vanya in this universe to have been born without powers.
> 
> But you, as a reader, are free to interpret it anyway you like. Vanya may or may not have powers. However, for this fic, they will not be making an appearance.
> 
> Thank you again for taking the time to check this story out!

When Vanya ran away from home, no one stopped her. In fact, no one even noticed. She stole money from Dad, enough to buy a bus ticket out of town to a place as far away from Hargreeves Manor as possible. 

She was sixteen and tired of feeling out of place in a house full of extraordinary people. Vanya figured that with running away, she could at least be among people just as ordinary as her. 

She found out the outside world was just as horrible, albeit in a different way. But she was luckier than most. Girls like her disappear everyday. Even before she decided to leave the only home she had ever known, Vanya had heard horror stories of what happened to young girls making their way alone in the world. Some end up working on the streets. Some get addicted to drugs. Some become victims. And the really unlucky ones end up becoming all three. 

Thankfully, that hadn’t happened to her. She had to lie about her age but she found a room to rent. It wasn’t the best. But she was fortunate that her landlady was what she would describe as a noble non-conformist. Someone who wasn’t totally on the right side of the law but not the type to take advantage of people she deemed vulnerable.

And loathe as Vanya was to admit it, she gave off that young and vulnerable vibe even before she stepped down from the bus to what would be her new city.

Not long after finding a place to stay, she managed to find a job at a diner.

Her life after the Umbrella Academy was neither glamorous nor charming. It was also lonely. But at least she no longer felt alone in a house full of kids her age. Back at the Academy, she was basically ignored because she had no powers.

Her siblings were busy with missions. And when they were back home, Dad had them doing all sorts of things from participating in his training or posing for a photo or an interview.

Even Five had let her down with all his talk and plans for time travel. Vanya agreed with Dad. Time travel was dangerous and Five should forget about it. But Five had no intention of listening. By the time she left home, Five had been avoiding her for weeks after her latest attempt to dissuade him ended up with him telling her to leave his room and not come back.

Vanya would be lying if she said she didn’t miss him. She longed for their old camaraderie where he would help her sneak out for doughnuts at Griddy’s or those quiet moments when all he wanted to do was sit back and listen to her play the violin she never got to bring with her.

But Vanya felt that with her new life, she at least didn’t have to feel useless. She was too busy to feel bored or unwanted. She couldn’t say she was happy exactly. But at least she was earning her own keep. Unlike in the Academy where she not only was made to feel like an extraneous member. But also one that could not contribute to it in any way.  
She should have known this life wasn’t meant to last forever.

About a year later, she was rushing out the front door to work on her morning shift when she found Five waiting for her outside. Without warning, he grabbed a hold of her and jumped.

When the blue light faded, Vanya saw that she was back in Hargreeves Manor, specifically in Dad’s office. The man himself was at his chair, busy scribbling notes on his red journal. As per usual, Reginald Hargreeves had not even bothered to look up, as if their sudden reappearance was of no particular importance.

“I see that you’ve brought Number Seven back. And as we discussed, you can do with her as you will as long as you fulfill what we’ve agreed upon.”

It took less than a minute. Reginald Hargreeves never once spared her a glance. Vanya had no idea what he was talking about. But it was clear his words were directed at Number Five, who didn’t wait for their adoptive father’s clear words of dismissal before dragging Vanya out of the office.

“Five, stop! What’s going on?”

She tried pulling back to make him cease his march towards wherever he planned to go. But that was a futile attempt. By seventeen, Five can go anywhere he wanted and take anyone he pleased with him. 

And so it only took a second for Vanya to find herself in a different room. A cursory glance at her surroundings revealed that it was decorated exactly like Five’s room, except the single bed was now queen sized and there were no windows. A quick peek at the only door in the room showed an en suite bathroom, which meant that there was no way in or out of this prison unless one could teleport like Five.

“Am I a criminal now?” she exclaimed in utter frustration and indignation. Over the years, her siblings had abused their abilities just to show their complete power over her: from Allison using her rumours to get Vanya to leave her alone to Klaus blackmailing her because a ghost told him she had taken Dad’s antique music box. But never had Five used his powers this way, at least not towards her and not until now.

“No. But you clearly can’t take care of yourself. Look at you!”

He had her face a full-length mirror to see the thin, almost skeletal, sallow-faced girl staring back at her.

It’s true that she had been skipping meals to make ends meet and to save up enough for school. But that's none of his business. Five had no right to take her from the life she made for herself and keep her locked up against her will.

“Do you know what I had to do to get Dad to allow you back?”

To be honest, she was too angry to care. Wasn’t he supposed to be traveling to the past or the future? What did he care what happened to her? After all, without her, it would be one less person nagging him to forget about time travel.

“I had to promise to give up on time jumps.”

He said that with no emotion, no inflection in his tone.

Vanya would have been touched. But she knew him too well. She escaped his hold and turned to face him,

“Bullshit! You might have managed to convince Dad you’d never time travel. But I know you.”

The devious smile on his lips sent a chill up her spine. 

“I have to hand it to you, Vanya. Just goes to show why you’re the only one I respect in this house.”

A fine way of showing respect, kidnapping her and keeping her in a cell with no way out. She wanted to hit him, scream at him, wipe that arrogant smirk off his face. But the familiar look in his eyes had her stepping back. Mimicking a predator, he took that as a sign to step forward, which only got Vanya taking further steps back until the edge of the bed brushed the backs of her knees. 

Then, she noticed the familiar butterflies fluttering in her stomach.

Ever since puberty started, she had noticed him looking at her differently. It frightened and excited her.

At the moment, her totally inappropriate reaction was a pain in the ass. And she wished she could turn it off.

“While Dad’s alive, I won’t time travel. But Dad’s an old man. He can’t possibly live forever.”

Suddenly, she felt dread as she started to realize the meaning behind Dad’s words at his office.

“What happens to me?”

“You’ll stay here where you’ll be safe and you can eat three square meals a day. Don’t worry. Not forever. Only until you give up on leaving the Academy.”

Vanya could feel the tears threaten to run down her cheeks, a lump in her throat almost making it impossible for her to speak.

“What if I promise never to leave? Will you let me out of here?”

By then, Five was so close that she could feel the warmth radiating from his body. His hand was caressing her cheek.

“I’m sorry, Vanya. But I don’t believe you. You’ll be staying here for some time. But I’ll be with you. This is now my room too so you won’t be alone all the time.”

With that, Vanya slapped his hand away. 

For a moment, he looked really hurt. 

But she felt too angry to care. She stared him down until he jumped away from her sight.

_______________________________

Five came back to his room. No, he came back to his and Vanya’s room to find it trashed. His books and papers scattered all over the floor, his telescope broken, the shelves toppled and Vanya lying on the bed after tearing up the bedsheets.

At least the comforter was still in one piece, albeit accompanying his things on the floor. He picked it up as he made his way to the bed he fully intended to share with Vanya.

She had cried herself to sleep. 

Five hoped that she would see reason sooner or later. Vanya needed him to take care of her just as he needed her to keep him sane in this house of crazy. He deeply regretted the way he acted on the days and weeks leading up to her flight from home.

He knew that she was only worried about him. But he had to act like an asshole and push her away.

The months following her disappearance left him an emotional wreck. Each night had him imagining the worst, Vanya beaten and tortured, maybe even raped before being left in some ditch to die. He dreaded seeing the police visit the house, fearing that they would be the ones to bring them news of Vanya gone forever. Needless to say, the year he spent without her made him realize that Vanya should have been his priority. So he made a deal with Dad.

Dad was only more than happy to accept if it meant Five would never pester him about time travel again.

But here’s the thing. Dad thought that Five was making a choice between Vanya and time travel. However, from Five’s point of view, why should he choose when he could have both?

All Five really needed to do was wait for Reginald Hargreeves to die. Dad would be beyond caring whether he time traveled by then. In the meantime, he’d spend this waiting period on taking care of Vanya as well as secretly perfecting his equations.

In the end, it will be a win-win for Five. Vanya will eventually forgive him and see things his way. She’d let him into her heart again. Hopefully, they’d do more than just sleep on the bed.

He was sure it was only a matter of time.


End file.
